Chapter 59

Sammy laughed. “My two are just the same.” And to prove it he kissed Zach’s cheek and was almost instantly pulled toward Eric, who presented a cheek to be kissed.

“Knock it off, you three. We don’t have a performance license,” Matthew said, appearing at the head of their table, his arm around Andrew’s waist.

Sammy, Zach, and Eric got up to either shake Matthew’s hand, or in Sammy’s case, hug him. Then Barry got up to do the same. Matthew had indeed lost weight and gained a solid physique in the process.

“It was a new recipe for the cornbread. Did you like it?”

“Yes, great,” Jake said.

“Barry makes it for us sometimes,” Jimmy said.

“With poblanos?”

“Yes,” Jake said. Was there a note of challenge in his voice? The red cowboy was fiercely protective of his Barry.

Matthew grinned. “I won’t ask you to say whose you enjoy the most then.”

“Yours,” Jake said before taking a drink of his beer.

Barry’s eyebrows rose, and Matthew smiled.

Jake held up a hand. “Haven’t finished. Yours was very fine, but Barry’s are excellent.”

Everyone laughed and Barry felt relieved and flattered.

“What’s for dessert?” Zach asked. Out of all six of them, he was the only one who’d cleaned his plate.

Sammy rolled his eyes and mouthed, “Greedy pig.”

“Ancho chile fudge pie,” Matthew told him.

“Great!” Zach said. “You did that a couple months ago and I was hoping you’d make it again.”

Barry looked forward to trying it as it was something he’d never made before.

“Or there’s some pumpkin-pecan cheesecake left over from yesterday,” Andrew added.

“Hush,” Matthew told him, giving the man a squeeze. “They aren’t supposed to know we serve them leftovers.”

It was well known all the main meals Matthew served were fresh that day. That was one of the big draws of the place and why tables filled up fast.

Matthew and Andrew moved on to Calvin and Brock’s table.

“Are they real cowboys, Brock and his son?” Jimmy asked their table guests.

Sammy shook his head. “They’re originally from Texas, so I suppose that’s where the cowboy thing comes from. Brock owns his own construction company and J.J.’s at NYU and will join Calvin’s firm along with Maggie when they graduate in a couple of years.”

Dessert soon arrived. Andrew put single servings in front of Zach, Sammy, and Eric, and one big plate with three spoons in front of Barry. “It’s what we do for all new couples, or threesomes,” Andrew told them.

“Hardly new, we’ve been together for sixteen months,” Barry said.

“New to us,” Andrew said before leaving to serve the other tables.

Despite his wish to appreciate the dessert, Barry couldn’t do it the justice he knew it deserved. The ancho chili was mildly spicy and a touch smoky but this was offset by the decadence of the dark chocolate fudge.

Barry rubbed his distended stomach; he was completely stuffed. Combining that with his jetlag, he felt a strong urge to just lean against one of his cowboys and close his eyes. But the night was still young, and he had the gay nightlife of New York to show his men.

“I know it’s a bit of a dive, but I can’t resist taking these two to Rawhide on 8th Avenue,” Barry told the men opposite.

Zach shook his head. “It’s closed.”

Barry was disappointed, he’d spent several interesting evenings there. “What about the Eagle?” Barry asked.

Eric smiled. “That’s still there. You know something of the local gay haunts then?”

Barry shrugged. After he and Robert had split, Barry had spent a month in New York, exploring the seedier side of the Big Apple. There were few if any real cowboys to be had, so he’d slowly made his way west until he’d reached Colorado, where his search ended.

“We might join you,” Zach said. “Been ages since I wore my leathers.”

“If they still fit,” Sammy observed dryly.

Zach grinned. “You’ll of course have heard how the cops around here are called New York’s Finest?”

Barry and his men nodded.

“We in the fire department have the nickname New York’s Bravest.”

“Uh huh,” Barry said.

“It’s a lesser-known fact that the state’s PR people are called New York’s Pushiest.” He grinned, but this soon changed to a grimace. Barry imagined Sammy had done something to Zach under the table.

“See this chain around my neck?” Sammy pointed. “Imagine your balls swinging from it.”

“See what I mean?” Zach said. 12

Saying they needed to go back to the hotel to change, Barry and his men agreed to meet Sammy, Eric, and Zach at the Eagle at 10pm.